Combination knapsack frame



Dec. 14, 1965 M. E. MOORE ETAL 3,223,300

COMBINATION KNAPSACK FRAME Filed April 7, 1964 INVENTORS United States Patent Olice 3,223,300 Patented Dec. 14, 1965 3,223,360 COMBINATIN KNAPSACK FRAME Martin E. Moore and Earl E. Moore, both of 1232 N. Euclid Ave., Upland, Calif. Filed Apr. 7, 1964, Ser. No. 357,873 Claims. (Cl. 224-25) This invention relates to a knapsack carrier or frame and the like and which is designed and arranged to provide for the use of soldiers, Boy Scouts, or campers in general. The carrier is also useful for purposes other than just a knapsack carrier or frame. The carrier is so arranged that it can be converted into a litter or stretcher when necessary, and also constructed in a manner so that it can be used as a portion of a bed-frame; or as the entire bed frame when augmented with certain equipment.

One of the principal objects of this invention is to present a new and novel knapsack carrier and the like which is made strong and which is economical to make and manufacture; and which is extendible to provide a bedframe or a portion of same; and which provides a stretcher that can be used to carry an injured person, the carcass of an animal, or even a squad roll which is otherwise cumbersome to transport on long hikes, etc.

Another object is to provide an extendible carrier that is equipped with extensible webbing that can be supported above ground to provide a dry bed-frame to support a sleeping bag, etc.

Other objects and aims of this invention will become apparent upon careful reading hereof.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a combination bed and stretcher frame in contracted form shown upon the back of a Boy Scout and wherein the frame is provided with means to support a knapsack, etc.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the invention showing the frame contracted to its smallest dimension;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2 showing webbing in lapped formation;

FIG. 4 is an elevational View of one side of that shown in FIG. 2 with parts in section;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view of one end of that shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an elevational View of the other end of that shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a plan view, showing part of the frame, and showing it widespread;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged elevational view of a portion of the webbing showing how it is folded and releasably held together;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged elevational view, partly in section, showing some details of a latching means to hold the frame in adjusted positions.

The accompanying drawings show a preferred form of the invention consisting of a main frame portion 1 and a base rearwardly extended or projected which is a shelflike portion 2. The frame is shown on a person indicated at 3 and wherein a knapsack 4 is mounted upon the frame. The frame has the side tubes 5 and 6 which are hollow to accommodate the extensible rods or tubes 7 and 8 respectively. Stop ends 9 and 10 are shown on the telescoping rods or tubes 7 and 8, respectively, and which act as grab elements for pulling them from the main frame tubes 5 and 6 when needed. These tubes or rods, as well as others to be mentioned later, are made of nonrust metal or plastic which is light in weight yet very strong for the purposes herein used. Such a metal may be an alloy of aluminum well known in the trades and one of which is the well known metal Duraluminf Any suitable material may be employed.

The main side tube 5 has brazed or otherwise securely xed thereto the elongated cross tubes 11, 12 and 13 positioned as shown, and within these cross tubes are the elongated inner tubes or rods 14, 15 and 16, respectively. These inner tubes or rods are brazed to or otherwise securely fixed to the main side tube 6. At one end, the main side tubes 5 and 6 are bent or curved, as shown, to form leg-like portions 17 and 18, respectively, and they are arranged to act as a shelf when the frame is upright on the back of a person; and to act as bed-frame legs when the frame is expanded and laid on the ground as shown in FIG. 4. The bottom ends of the legs (looking at FIG. 4) are bent or curved toward each other as indicated at 19 and 20, respectively. One leg has a smaller diameter than the other so that their elongated integral arms portions 21 and 22 can neatly telescope and have mutual slide bearing action between them and this is best shown in FIG. 5 of the drawings.

All the telescoping portions are held in their proper extended position (and contracted position) by the latch members 23 and in a manner that the tubes and/ or rods have suflicient overlapping so as to be rm when extended. Such a latch member is shown in FIG. 9 of the drawings. For instance: let the outer tube be 21 and the inner tube or rod be 22 as shown in FIG. 5; now as shown in FIG. 9, a spring ribbon member or metal strip 25 is held in position by a screw or rivet 26. The distal end of the strip is turned upwardly a little as at 27 so that ones fingernail can get under its edge andl raise the strip. Fixed to this strip on the underside thereof there is a plunger or pin 28 that is adapted to enter either hole 29 or hole 30 of the inner tube or rod depending upon whether or not the telescoping members are contracted or expanded. All the other telescoping frame parts have the same latch arrangement to keep the frame expanded or contracted with little or no loose play.

Along the main tubes there is fixed a plurality of webbing strips numbered 31 to 35 inclusive. These strips may be any suitable fabric or plastic that is flexible and useful to the invention. The ends of the webbing strips or bands are securely lixed to the tubes 5 4and 6, as indicated by the snaps or rivets 36. All these strips are releasably overlapped upon themselves when the frame is contracted as shown by the lapped portions a, b and c in FIG. 8. The lapped portions are held in position by the snap-on elements indicated in general .at 37.

The snap-on elements consist of two parts, the female part 38 and the male part 39. Since such snap-on fasteners are common to the fabric trades, no detailed explanation is given .as to their specific construction. The male part in all cases passes through holes 40 of the middle fold and these holes are large enough so as not to interfere with the sandwiching of the middle fold into its proper place. By forcing the snap-ons apart, the webbing is released so that the frame can then be extended by releasing the latches 23 on the tubes 14, 1S, 16 and 21.

FIG. 7 shows the frame expanded and the webbing extended so that the width of the frame is great enough to nicely accommodate a sleeping bag and the like, not shown. Should lit be desired to rest the leg and foot end of a sleeping bag upon the frame when extended as indicated in broken lines in FIG. 2, then twigs and the like can be collected from brush and trees to support the leg end of the sleeping bag upon the tubes or rods 7 and 8. H-owever, it is usually unnecessary to support the leg end of the sleeping bag upon the extended frame members 7 and S in that there is sufficient comfort to the sleeper when the torso portion of the body is nicely supported. When itis desired to carry an injured person upon the knapsack frame, the distal ends of the extended members 7 and 8 at the stops 9 and 10 can be used to hold that end of the frame upwardly by one stretcherbearer while the other end at 17-18 is supported by another stretcher-bearer. l Should it bevnecessary to support the legs of an injured person, again twigs can be collected and employed. However, if desired, extra webbing strips could be Icarried and their ends snapfastened around the tubes or rods 7 and 8.

The carrier straps 1a and 1b have their ends xed to any lsuitable part 0f the frame. The upper ends of the straps may be xed to about the second cross-member 12 as by looping the strap around the tube and fastening same to itself and the bottom ends of the straps may have hitches so that they can be released when desired and suitable eyelets or the like provided at the lower end yof the frame in a suitable manner well known to the trade. The upper ends of the straps, however, should be close together.

Certain novel features and details of this invention are disclosed herein, and in some cases in considerable detail, in order to make the invention clear in at least one form thereof. However, it is to be clearly understood that the invention, as disclosed, is not necessarily limited to the exact form and details disclosed since it is apparent that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from. the spirit and scope of the claims of this invention.

Having thus described our invention, what is claimed as new .and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. An expandable knapsack carrier frame and the like comprising a pair of spaced apart elongated hollow side tubes, the tubes at one end having curved portions with telescoping sections to form a shelf-like structure when the frame is upright, telescoping cross-members having their outer ends lixed to their respective side tubes in spaced apart positions on the side of the tubes wherefrom the shelf-like structure projects; and a plurality of spaced apart webbing strips having their ends fixed to the side tubes on the opposite side to which the cross-members are xed, and means releasably holding each webbing strip in folded condition when the frame is in contracted form.

2. The frame recited in claim 1 wherein each side tube has an extendible rod therein so that the frame can be extended lengthwise.

3. That recited in claim 2 wherein each rod has a stop element on .its outer end.

4. An expandable carrier frame for knapsacks and the like, the carrier frame comprising a pair of spaced apart parallel elongated side members, a plurality of extendible and contractable rigid means having their outer ends xed to their respective side members so that the compass of the frame can be made wide and narrow, and a flexible web means having ends xed to said members, and fastening means on the web means so that when the frame is made narrow, the web means is folded and the folds thereof fastened together to make a carrier for the back of a person.

5. The carrier frame recited in claim 4 wherein the side members at like ends thereof are bent outwardly to provide a shelf-like supporting structure.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 649,832 5 1900 Furnivall 224--5 5 2,050,822 8/1936 Weber et al. 224-8 2,390,673 12/1945 Wallace.

FOREIGN PATENTS 30,740 10/1959 Finland. 159,664 4/ 1905 Germany. 71,208 6/1950 Norway. 210,294 9/ 1940 Switzerland.

GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner.

HUGO O. SCHULZ, Examiner.

I. E. OLDS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. AN EXPANDABLE KNAPSACK CARRIER FRAME AND THE LIKE COMPRISING A PAIR OF SPACED APART ELONGATED HOLLOW SIDE TUBES, THE TUBES AT ONE END HAVING CURVED PORTIONS WITH TELESCOPING SECTIONS TO FORM A SHELF-LIKE STRUCTURE WHEN THE FRAME IS UPRIGHT, TELESCOPING CROSS-MEMBERS HAVING THEIR OUTER ENDS FIXED TO THEIR RESPECTIVE SIDE TUBES IN SPACED APART POSITION ON THE SIDE OF THE TUBES WHEREFROM THE SHELF-LIKE STRUCTURE PROJECTS; AND A PLURALITY OF SPACED APART WEBBING STRIPS HAVING THEIR ENDS FIXED TO THE SIDE TUBES ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE TO WHICH THE CROSS-MEMBERS ARE FIXED, AND MEANS RELEASABLY HOLDING EACH WEBBING STRIP IN FOLDED CONDITION WHEN THE FRAME IS IN CONTACTED FORM. 